This snuff bottle community forum is dedicated to the novice, more experienced, and expert collectors. Topics are intended to cover all aspects and types of bottle collecting. To include trials, tribulations, evaluating, identifying, researching, appraisals, and much more.

We are also currently working extra hard towards supporting, and giving well deserved recognition to all new and upcoming student artists of "Very Modern" inside painted bottles.

Among other things, donations help keep the forum free from Google type advertisements, and also make it possible to purchases additional photo hosting MB space.

Oh thanks George and Joey! Yes, it is well hollowed up to the crook where it bends, so it does seem like a functional bottle. I hope others will share their unusual/quirky bottles too on this Friday Fun thread!

Dear Cathy,I donít see the fun here, it is a nice bottle. The quality of the stand alone is speaking about the level of the bottle. Which is the size? The fact that you see it as just a fun bottle make me think that it has been cheap. If so, you have been lucky!Kind regardsGiovanni

So it is only hollowed roughly half its length? Because of the ease with with chalcedony/agate may be hollowed, I would have expected it to go to the end, or within 3-5 mm of it, anyway.How long is the bottle, from mouth to tip?

It still looks good, though. And I agree with Giovanni's comment re. the stand. Nicely done.Best,Shabbat Shalom,Joey

I don't have any really odd shape bottle in my collection other than very few pebble shaped Jade and agate bottle, so I know very little about them.....anyway, are they expected to be hollowed till the end? or as far as a straight spoon can reached?

I present the "Fearsome Bear" bottle, please note I didn't add snuff to the description as it might have space for a small snort of snuff but that's it. Perhaps I could try and pass it off as a snuff bottle for someone trying to kick the habit but I doubt it.

Clearly Imperial and said by the seller to have been owned by Ho-shen so an absolute steal for the price I got it for.

I have little doubt that many will be very envious of this bottle and as such I have good news, there is one coming up at auction on live auctioneers in a few weeks. It's clearly a shameless copy of this priceless original though.

Giovanni, so happy to hear I am lucky! I can't find a reference and so have no idea of it's value, and yes I paid very little for it.

Joey, it is only hollowed to where it bends so only hollowed half way - but is hollowed well to the sides up to that point. It is difficult to measure because of the crook - if I measure just straight from bottom to top it's 5.5cm but measuring with a tape makes it 6.5cm long. The stand does seem custom made for it because it fits like a glove.

Pin, it is hollowed well enough for a small 3cm long spoon.

Adrian, I like your fun bottle "description" - thanks for playing! I have a lot of unusual bottles that I can't find references for and don't necessarily want to present them here as "serious" bottles - but interesting, curious ones - like the Alexandrite glass I shared before.

I present the "Fearsome Bear" bottle, please note I didn't add snuff to the description as it might have space for a small snort of snuff but that's it. Perhaps I could try and pass it off as a snuff bottle for someone trying to kick the habit but I doubt it.

Clearly Imperial and said by the seller to have been owned by Ho-shen so an absolute steal for the price I got it for.

Cute display piece, but I do not see any Imperial connection..

Cathy, I do not think yours is old, but not so unusual for some display/cabinet bottles to be partly hollowed out, leaving the heavier mass at the lower part of the bottle to aid in balancing the piece. Nothing to do with being to difficult to hollow out further. I do like the stand very much.

I am curious if Tom is seeing your bottle. To be honest, I doubt the mineral of China origin. I think imported. Possibly from Mexico, Botswana, or Argentina are the only "banded type" agates with these orbs.

I may have been somewhat hasty in my suggested provenance as a bottle from the Imperial Palace Workshops as a closer inspection of the previous buyers invoice for it shows it actually came from "The Imperial Palace Wok Shop" which is a Chinese take away in Swindon which has been owned by the Hoshen family for some time.

I may have been somewhat hasty in my suggested provenance as a bottle from the Imperial Palace Workshops as a closer inspection of the previous buyers invoice for it shows it actually came from "The Imperial Palace Wok Shop" which is a Chinese take away in Swindon which has been owned by the Hoshen family for some time.